Zionnghaka, known as Pu Ziona, died in June 2021 leaving behind 38 wives, 89 children, and 33 grandchildren. He led a Christian sect in Mizoram that practiced polygamy and built a four-story mansion to house his massive family.
The House of the New Generation
Ziona was born on July 21, 1945, at Hmawngkawn village in Serchhip district, located 100 kilometers south of Aizawl, Mizoram’s capital. His father, Challianchana, led a Christian sect called Chana Pâwl. At seventeen, Ziona married his first wife Zaṭhiangi, who was three years older than him. She would become the head wife, directing household chores with strict discipline.
When his father died on February 27, 1997, Ziona was elected as the successor to lead the sect. The community gave him the title “Hotupa,” meaning leader or master. By that time, he had already married more wives than his father ever had. In one remarkable year, he married ten women.
To accommodate his growing family, Ziona constructed a four-story mansion in the mountainous village of Baktawng. The house, named “Chhuan Thar Run” or House of the New Generation, resembled a boarding house. The village also had a “Khualbuk,” a guesthouse for visitors curious about the extraordinary family.
Ziona occupied a double bedroom on the ground floor. His wives took turns sleeping with him according to a roster, with seven to eight younger wives attending to his daily needs. The younger wives lived on the ground floor near his room, while older wives resided in dormitories on the first floor.
Despite the unusual arrangement, his wives claimed there was no rivalry among them. Of his 39 wives, 22 were below forty years old and received a week to spend with him. He married his last wife in 2004, though by 2005, three wives had died and some had abandoned him.
He had 26 sons-in-law, and his daughters lived separately with their families. Ziona claimed he remembered every family member’s name.
The family operated self-sufficiently. They grew crops for food, and Ziona established a school for his children. His younger brother managed the school, which followed government curriculum but included subjects specific to the Chana sect. Ziona never sought government assistance.
Daily life was divided by gender roles. His wives handled cooking, daughters cleaned the house and did laundry, while men managed livestock, agriculture through jhum cultivation, and small cottage industries including carpentry and aluminum utensil making. On July 21, 2013, the family celebrated Ziona’s 68th birthday with 150 guests.
The Religious Foundation
The Chana Pâwl was a Christian sect practicing polygamy. Ziona’s uncle Khuangtuaha founded the sect on June 12, 1942, at Hmawngkawn village, naming it Lalpa Kohhran Thar or The Lord’s New Church. The mainstream Christian church in Mizoram had objected to pagan practices in worship, including the traditional drum called khuang.
Khuangtuaha believed the drum was harmless and made it a key worship instrument. The sect also practiced millennialism, accepting the literal event of Revelation Chapter 20 regarding the thousand-year rule of Jesus Christ on Earth. Khuangtuaha decreed men could marry as many wives as they could support.
The Presbyterian Church excommunicated them for promoting what they considered wrong and dangerous theology. When Khuangtuaha died in 1955, his brother Chana inherited leadership, and the sect became known as Chana Pâwl.
In 1967, following political turmoil from the Mizo National Front uprising, the government relocated the sect to Baktawng. Under Ziona’s leadership, they adopted the name Chhuanthar, meaning New Generation. The sect celebrated their founding day as “Bawkte Kut” on June 12 annually. By 2021, over 2,000 followers in 433 families resided in Baktawng Tlangnuam village.
Death and Legacy
At seventy-five, Ziona was diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes. On June 7, 2021, he became seriously ill and lost consciousness on June 11. Doctors at Baktawng discovered he had anemia. On Sunday, June 13, he was brought to Trinity Hospital in Aizawl around 2:30 p.m. already unconscious. Doctors briefly revived him with CPR but pronounced him dead at 3:00 p.m., ten minutes after admission.
Chief Minister Zoramthanga announced his death on Twitter, noting that Mizoram and Baktawng had become major tourist attractions because of the family. When his body returned home that night, his pulse allegedly returned, remaining stable the next day. The family declared his pulse stopped at 9:00 p.m. Monday. The official funeral and burial occurred on June 17, 2021.
Though widely reported as a Guinness World Record holder, Ziona never appeared in the official records. In 2007, Guinness officials visited but he refused photographs. In 2011, he told CNN he declined because he wanted no publicity. However, the World Record Academy recorded his family as the “Biggest Family” in 2011. Ripley’s Believe It or Not also recognized them as the largest living family worldwide.
